2007–2008 Kenyan crisis

[10] In part due to the ethnic and geographic diversity of Kenyan politics, no singular narrative can explain the reaction of opposition supporters to the announcement of Kibaki's swearing-in, which was done on December 30, 2007, at night.

Raila Odinga encouraged supporters to engage in mass protests which he announced on local television and radio stations, most noticeably in Mombasa, Eldoret, Kericho, Kisumu, Nakuru and parts of Nairobi.

[11][12] Targeted ethnic violence (as opposed to violent protests) escalated and at first was directed mainly against Kikuyu people—the community of which Kibaki is a member—living outside their traditional settlement areas, especially in the Rift Valley Province.

[13] The violence started with the murder of over 50 unarmed women and children, some as young as a month old, by locking them in a church and burning them alive in Kiambaa village in the outskirts of Eldoret Town, on New Year's Day.

On February 28, 2008, Kibaki and Odinga signed a power-sharing agreement called the National Accord and Reconciliation Act 2008, which established the office of the Prime Minister and created a coalition government.

Some included: Reports by international observers about manipulations and admissions by members of the Electoral Commission of Kenya that their staff provided them with incorrect figures have further fuelled this anger.

[20] The violence against Kikuyus occurred all over the country but was higher in areas like the Nairobi slums, Nyanza Province, the Rift Valley, and the Coast, where opposition against Kibaki was particularly strong.

[28] Following the commission's declaration of his victory, Kibaki was promptly sworn in for his second term late in the evening on the same day,[30][32] calling for the "verdict of the people" to be respected and for "healing and reconciliation" to begin.

[37] In a telex from then US Embassy in Nairobi to the State Department in Washington DC [released in July 2012], US Ambassador Michael Ranneberger set out five scenarios as to who really won the election.

The telex also noted that there was 'evidence of rigging on both sides'[38] and[39] Kivuitu said on January 2, that he had been pressured by PNU and ODM-K (Kibaki's and Kalonzo Musyoka's parties) into announcing the results without delay, and he claimed that he did not personally know who really won.

[40] Within minutes of the commission's declaration of Kibaki as victor, tribe-based rioting and violence, primarily directed against Kikuyus, broke out across Kenya,[20] and the government suspended live television coverage for some days.

[45] For his part, Kibaki emphasized the importance of peace, stability, and tolerance in his 2008 New Year's message, speaking of the election as a concluded event and warning that law-breakers would be punished.

Also on January 3, Kibaki said that he was willing to engage in dialogue "once the country is calm", and he described the continuing violence as "senseless", while Attorney General Amos Wako called for a recount, an investigation into the election, and the formation of a national unity government, saying that the situation was "quickly degenerating into a catastrophe of unimaginable proportions".

[citation needed] PNU members of parliament, newly appointed cabinet ministers and even the government spokesman, Dr Alfred Mutua, are known to have said Kufuor "was coming to take tea", and not to "negotiate with the warring factions regarding the elections"; this was captured both on TV and print media.

[63] The two sides agreed to "an immediate cessation of violence as well as any acts which may be detrimental to finding a peaceful solution to the ongoing crisis", but the talks otherwise failed when, according to Nyongo, Kibaki refused to sign an agreement (which was already signed by ODM representatives) presented to him by Kufuor[64] that would have provided for an interim coalition government and an inquiry into the Electoral Commission; the government, however, blamed Odinga for the failure of the talks, saying that he was not responsive to Kibaki's offer of dialogue.

[67] Roads and Public Works Minister John Michuki said on January 14, that Annan was not coming at the government's invitation and reiterated the claim that Kibaki won the election.

On January 21, Minister of State for Internal Security George Saitoti warned against further protests, saying that they would only be "an opportunity for criminals to loot and commit other crimes" and that "illegal acts will be dealt with accordingly".

Foreign Minister Moses Wetangula, in reaction to criticism from the United Kingdom, summoned the UK's High Commissioner to complain, and he said that "our elections don't need a stamp of authority from the House of Commons".

[78] On January 23, the ODM held a memorial service in Nairobi for victims of the violence, at which Odinga said that tribes should not fight because "this is a war between the people of Kenya and a very small bloodthirsty clique clinging to power".

Museveni was also said to have proposed a power-sharing deal, which was rejected by the government on the grounds that it was unwilling to share power with the ODM due to the latter's alleged responsibility for the killing of innocent people.

[97] Odinga said on the same day that the ODM would withdraw from the talks if a deal was not reached, and he said that his party wanted a new presidential election to be held within three months, with a new electoral commission and the same voter register.

[104] Speaking before the National Assembly on February 12, Annan said that both sides in the talks had agreed to set up "an independent review committee that will be mandated to investigate all aspects of the 2007 presidential election".

According to Annan, they were about to take "the last difficult and frightening step" to conclude a deal, and he said that he intended to remain in Kenya until a new government was in place, by which time he thought the process would be "irreversible".

Meanwhile, Foreign Minister Wetangula said that help was welcome but he stressed that ultimately the problem had to be solved by Kenyans and that no one should make the "mistake of putting a gun to anybody's head and saying 'either/or'" in an attempt to force a solution.

Nyongo then called for the National Assembly to be summoned within a week "to enact the necessary changes in the constitution to implement these mediation proposals", warning that the ODM would otherwise resume protests.

[118] Annan left Kenya on March 2, leaving Oluyemi Adeniji, a former Nigerian Foreign Minister, to lead talks on remaining issues, such as land, political reforms, and the uneven distribution of wealth between various ethnic groups.

[122] Speaking in the National Assembly when it convened on March 6, Kibaki urged it to quickly pass the legislation required to implement the power-sharing agreement; he said that the people were watching and that they wanted to see "pragmatic solutions, not ideological posturing".

[149] Marathon runner Wesley Ngetich Kimutai died after he was shot with an arrow on January 19, in the Trans Mara District, becoming the second international athlete to lose his life.

[158] The violence in Kenya has had serious economic ramifications throughout East Africa, particularly for the landlocked countries of the Great Lakes region (Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi, and eastern parts of the Democratic Republic of Congo).

A BBC report in 2009 found that rival groups in Rift Valley Province, such as the Kalenjin and Kikuyu, were purchasing firearms such as AK-47 and G3 rifles, in readiness for anticipated violence at the 2013 poll.